Microsoft Makes Azure Available via Open Licensing Program

Microsoft is making Azure available through its Open Licensing program, the company announced this week via blog post. Availability is scheduled to start on August 1, 2014, adding a third purchase option for Azure to the two existing options.

Current Azure customers have purchased the service through the Azure website or made it a part of an Enterprise Agreement with Microsoft.

Making Azure available through Open Licensing allows potential customers to take advantage of Microsoft Volume Licensing and the program’s range of payment options and value-added services.

Resellers will purchase tokens from their distributor and apply credit in $100 increments to the customer’s Azure Portal to cover any “consumption-based service” cost. Partners will be able to create custom, hybrid solutions and then directly monitor and manage them for customers according to Microsoft.

“To put it simply; Azure in Open makes it easier for you to do business with us, and opens the door to new, profitable business models for you,” said Phil Sorgen, Corporate VP, Wordwide Partner Group in a video accompanying the blog post.

In the lead up to availability, Microsoft will be offering sales and technical training for Azure in Open Licensing. The company will be holding an Azure Ramp Up Summit on June 4th to begin sharing partner resources, and the offering will certainly be heavily featured at the upcoming Worldwide Partner Conference in July.

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